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Post by The Wyrd on Mar 14, 2021 16:11:49 GMT -8
A moment of peace, in a back alleyway behind a closed hardware store.
It was 11:58pm. At most, half an hour had passed since the original incident at the diner. Alecto was practically vibrating from the deluge of fear she'd torn out of the suited man after she had sliced his arm. It wasn't Summer's energy, but it was something, anything to let her keep going despite the bullet in her back. She felt a little woozy from blood-loss. Neither of them were really much on the medicine, but they had some practical enough bandages in the form of the remnants of Alecto's clothing.
The Summer Beast was with it enough to know that looking at anything distinctive was risky. Thus, the effort to remain incognito for a few minutes to catch their breath and maybe try to bandage the injury before it became worse.
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Post by Alecto on Mar 15, 2021 10:44:03 GMT -8
She couldn't keep this up.
Maybe it was Firebringer's small stature, maybe it was a lack of established trust; despite the crisis, it was instinctual to be In Charge. The Elemental had been a huge help with the basics, which she repeatedly expressed gratitude until the other started to spark and pop from all the attention. She couldn't tell if it was anger or anxiety. Alecto herself didn't look at housing numbers, vehicles, or street names, chattering how she was shit at navigation and letting the other Summer take point.
"Did you friend run the plate? Do you know anyone who can?" she asked in a low voice. Alecto was referring to the vehicle the pair had rolled up in, but she was too distracted to be precise in her suggestions. "I'm going to contact a medic, unless you know someone offhand that can handle this sort of situation. When you give them the address, make sure I'm not within earshot, or give me a heads up."
Her eyes roved the property, not moving from her spot immediately unless she had to, but seeking an item that would nick her a little more time with the glamour she held. She explained to the Torrent what she was looking for, and that trash wasn't suitable; an obvious choice, but not following the concept of 'ownership' once it had been abandoned for a 'new owner'.
Better to slip into the building and get some maintenance clothes and supplies from the employee lockers.
"You can potentially use a mirror to get to them, if they don't find us first." Wiping a shaking hand on the ruddy jean shorts, she nodded towards the exposed streets. "I'm not stealthy. If you aren't either... we need to be careful. M'not used to being shot, with the Cunning," she laughed weakly.
"Surprised me."
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Firebringer
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Elemental Ifrit, Presence 3 (Intimidating)
Posts: 634
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Post by Firebringer on Mar 17, 2021 20:25:12 GMT -8
"Run plates? Crap, I didn't even think of that. Row-He might have considered that. The other one is cop-like right? He might have thought of it too, but..." If not, do I remember the license plate number?
Fire takes a moment to search her memories. Healers? Healers... do I know any? She shakes her head, the stress of the situation making her brain fuzzy. What about... What about that time with Rowan? They defeated the cow, he was injured, someone healed him. Who was that? It was scary, wasn't it? But the smell... Icarus? Do I even have their number? She scratches her head, her eyebrows furrowed as they consider it and then she shakes her head.
"I know one, but I'm not the one that would have their number." And literally none of the Springs I know can heal. Should I learn? Maybe someone could teach me at some point.
Firebringer looks around with Alecto for an object that can help them while she thinks. Something that belongs to the store? They could just steal a storefront plant or anything else a store keeps out front. If it did have to be an employee's, they could pull the distraction and Fire could see about slipping into a back room? "I'm kind of stealthy. I'd have to concentrate. I've just kind of got this presence about me, makes people nervous, but with enough focus, I should... I should be able to do it. We could give it a try."
And again, she tries searching her brain for information, anything that could help them brainstorm something that might give them some direction, but everything feels scattered. She's distracted, worried. Rowan hadn't answered her text either. Is he okay? Perhaps the stress of her friend potentially being in danger is keeping her mind from being as sharp as it could be.
"I haven't received a text back, so I'm worried. If we can find a good glass side window to like a store, I could at least get us to a place where someone could tell someone to meet us. At the very least getting out of this immediate area might give us a lot more time." I mean. Riley's gotta know a healer, right? It's Spring's thing, even if they don't use it themselves. Maybe I could tap them. Riley... Oh, shit wait. What about Finn?
"Oh, I'm dumb. I think I do know someone who can-and he's a- wow. Okay. Sorry it took my brain a minute to get there." Time is of the essence girl. Get a move on it. "Here, I'll give them a call and see what we can do. Just. Uh yeah. And, this is crazy. I'm glad you aren't hurt worse. You kicked ass back there."
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Post by The Wyrd on Mar 18, 2021 15:23:58 GMT -8
Alecto thinks briefly about who might be willing to come running into a dangerous situation involving the cops and maybe some shadier elements with snappy trigger fingers, even as she searches for an item that was owned by the business. She finds one -- a dustpan that had fallen under a nearby dumpster with the words BOB'S HARDWARE written on it. Good enough.
Alecto comes into it at about the same time that Firebringer does, with her personal knowledge of the guy. Finn is probably the right person for the job. He's a cop. A sergeant, even. He might be able to call the police off, especially if someone was influencing them. He was an Ogre healer. He could definitely run the plate, if they knew it. Neither of them got a good look at it, though. Perhaps Rowan and Ian could help, but they weren't immediately answering.
Firebringer calls Finn. It would be a bit before he could get there, and time was everything in a situation when one was hunted. They'd have to do some smart shit. Escape, somehow, or perhaps hunker down...
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Finn
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Played by Swift
Posts: 139
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Post by Finn on Mar 18, 2021 17:45:28 GMT -8
It had been a typical day at the office: handling calls, pulling files, sorting paperwork, that sort of thing. Finn hadn't quite turned in yet, but was getting close when the phone rang. He puts down the finger of whiskey he'd poured himself as a nightcap and glanced at the caller ID, raising an eyebrow at the name.
The phone doesn't ring more than a couple times before it's answered. "Fire, what's up? It's midnight..."
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Firebringer
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Elemental Ifrit, Presence 3 (Intimidating)
Posts: 634
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Post by Firebringer on Mar 18, 2021 17:58:27 GMT -8
Fire calls Finn, hoping that he'll pick up quick. There is high anxiety as the phone rings and it feels like an eternity as it does. Every last ring reminding her of the moments ticking away, Alecto still very hurt. Danger is away for now, but for how long? As she stands, she is also looking around, trying to keep an eye on their surroundings. God forbid something jumps out at them in the middle of this call. We need a window. A mirror. I can get us out of here. Coffee shop? Can totally walk through the door if we can walk through something. Urgh, we should have used that first mirror. We'd have been out.
And then Finn picks up. There should be a mild sigh of relief, but instead she just starts talking fast, carefully, "Hey. Situation. Bad. Crazy cops after me and person. I don't know what's up with them, but whatever it is is wrong. Just plain shooting civilians in public. Not normal. Person I'm with is hurt. Need your help."
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Post by Alecto on Mar 18, 2021 18:31:47 GMT -8
"It's fine, darling," Alecto assured as the walking campfire crackled and popped with self defeating statements, "It's why I'm suggesting. Just send the idea to your friends. Shooting on a fleeing unarmed civilian isn't normal. Rowan is probably just being asked some questions; that's normal procedure. He just needs to eat his eggs." Maybe magic, to mind control, or the paperwork was bad.
As Firebringer offered her unreliable statement on stealth, she shook her head and flicked the dustpan as an answer.
"Building's mine, now. Cameras won't be on us, and the alarms won't trip." She slid along the wall, "I'm not a fan of jumping through reflections with the CCTVs running from the other businesses. We'll find one inside, hopefully. A bathroom or just a display. It's a hardware store." Her sentences were quiet, tight, brief; taking shallow, light breathes to stop her diaphragm from tugging on the bullet wound. The door to the back exit is tried, Wyrd spinning to welcome her as she produces a dummy key to mime the action. She takes her time in case something was on the other side, listening for a voice or shuffling. They would have closed and cleaned up by now? But you can never be sure.
The Elemental struck her as really wanting to help, but not used to thinking things through. Action, reaction, action, reaction. She knew the mindset all too well, and it made her nervous of the company she kept. However, it was nice to have a walking bomb watching her back either way. Despite the constantly feeling that she could blow at any moment, Danica was quite sweet.
After waiting for the coast to be clear, she ducks inside.
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Finn
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Played by Swift
Posts: 139
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Post by Finn on Mar 18, 2021 18:54:13 GMT -8
It took less than 5 seconds for Finn's night to change. There was a lot packed into Firebringer's rapid-fire, short sentences. He could hardly believe some of it - cops firing on unarmed civilians?!? - but now clearly wasn't the time. "You've got it. Where are you, or where should I go?" It wasn't likely the cops had a bug on Fire's cell, slightly more likely they did on his, he reflect wryly, but even that was highly unlikely. Still, if they were shooting at civilians there was no sense in taking too many chances.
He was already on his feet and moving toward the door. Just jeans and a black shirt, no uniform tonight. He was off duty anyway. "Whatever you've got, give it to me." He grabbed his gun, badge, and keys, and was out the door.
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Firebringer
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Elemental Ifrit, Presence 3 (Intimidating)
Posts: 634
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Post by Firebringer on Mar 20, 2021 1:23:49 GMT -8
She really wants to believe Alecto's words. Yes. They're fine. They didn't run, they didn't do anything weird. They have no reason to have anything happening. It's this situation though. It is putting her in that paranoid state, which is both good and really bad. She should be suspicious, but her reaction timing is complete shit. This isn't like the desert. She doesn't need to talk in the desert, just follow the signs.
"I'll text address. I won't be surprised if they throw a jammer at us if they... yeah. Come quick. I'll text if shit changes, assuming there is a moment to think about it," she says as quietly as she can into her phone before immediately moving to send the address they were at, picked up via google maps. While she does that, she checks her phone charge. 72%. Okay. Not bad. Should be fine unless we're holed up for over a day. "Send me something when you're here. Uh, if you run into anything, send like... I dunno, a grimace emoji? I appreciate you, dude."
She follows Alecto into the store once they determine it is safe to do so, making sure the back door is then locked behind them. Once they are in, she immediately begins scanning the area for anything that could be wrong.
Maybe it is everything this night has been throwing at her, but she does not feel on her a game at all. She looks at Alecto and whispers, "I appreciate your ability to make buildings yield. Seriously." You can't learn and have all the contracts. ...well, I dunno, can you? No. Stop. Think.
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Finn
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Played by Swift
Posts: 139
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Post by Finn on Mar 21, 2021 0:28:20 GMT -8
"Roger." He hangs up the phone. A grimace emoji? What even was that? He knew what emojis were, of course, but there were just too many of them to track. He quickly plugs the address into GoogleMaps(TM) and pulls up the fastest route as he climbs into his vehicle and starts the engine. He hoped Fire was going to be ok. At the very least maybe he could make up for getting her, albeit rented, Jeep toasted. He quickly examines the route, makes any mental adjustments he can (drawing on his time with the LVMPD), and rolls out. Hang in there, Fire, I'll be there as fast as I can.
Swift - Finn — Today at 2:23 AM Finn tries to get to the address as quickly as he can (Wits + Streetwise): @dicecord-CoD roll 3 Dicecord-CoD BOT — Today at 2:23 AM Swift - Finn rolled 3 dice and got 1 success. 9 4 5
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Post by The Wyrd on Mar 21, 2021 20:08:16 GMT -8
Once Finn hung out the phone, he hit the road as fast as he could. He was twenty-seven minutes away, twenty-seven long minutes that felt like they were going by like molasses. He felt like he hit every red light, even though he didn't. Agitated, the Ogre flipped on the police scanner --
"All units responding to 444, Sweet Tomato Diner is clear. Alpha-Six-Alpha reports one suspect, blonde, five-foot-five, wearing short shorts and a black brassier struck by gunfire. Officers in pursuit. Suspects last seen proceeding northbound on a rooftop near Belzer and Avery..."
His car sped off into the night.
Meanwhile, Firebringer and Alecto had easy access to Bob's Hardware. The store was dark, with a simple alarm and camera system that yielded fully to the power of the Beast's Contract. It was a small joint, three long aisles of various and sundry hardware equipment with a few toilets, sinks and light fixtures available to round it out.
A quick canvas would reveal a single washroom with a first aid kit and a dirty, but functional mirror that was wide enough that someone could use it for Mirror Walk, if that was desired.
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Post by Alecto on Mar 23, 2021 15:16:17 GMT -8
Alecto calls Firebringer, gesturing to the mirror as she supports herself at an odd angle of trying to keep her bloody back off the wall. Her eyes were a little wider, the shock starting to wear off as the muscle around the area of impact pinched and squeezed.
There was no clothes or uniforms to swap to, though at this point she was losing confidence in the ability to dress herself. "Dani?"
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Firebringer
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Elemental Ifrit, Presence 3 (Intimidating)
Posts: 634
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Post by Firebringer on Mar 23, 2021 23:21:43 GMT -8
Fire walks over to Alecto to see what she's found and she actually lights up some when she sees the mirror. "Oh, fuck yes. This will get us out of here." She looks to her phone then.
"Okay, I know more than a few places we could go and... fuck, we need Finn." She says as she takes much better notice of Alecto's condition. "You don't look good at all. Um, but we need to be cognizant of time and the area. Is there anything we can do to... while we wait for Finn? We've got the place taken over... Oh-" she realizes she never did call on Summer for ambush protection. She channels glamour through her veins as she activates her contract. "Okay, no sneaky sneaks up upon us..."
"I can't imagine Finn is very far. How are you doing? I know you aren't good, but like, where is your pain at?" She asks before looking down at her phone briefly, hoping there will be a notification shortly from Finn. Urgh. Please hurry up. Pleeeease.
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Post by Alecto on Mar 24, 2021 18:32:38 GMT -8
"Dani, we're being hunted. Please, you literally just called him? We can just update this Finn guy once we're out of here so we don't get surrounded. I'm fine. We're FUCKED if we get found first and Finn can't do SHIT." The Beast's anger bubbled free with the feral fear of being cornered flashing in her eyes.
"They can track us with blood and witnesses and CCTVs, but teleporting is something completely different," she tried to explain. "I have control of the locks to let us in but it's not like I can stop a SWAT team. Us moving isn't going to make a difference in his travel time. Tell him your options and he can update you on what's closest to him. You can coordinate this," she breathed, trying to encourage her.
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Firebringer
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Elemental Ifrit, Presence 3 (Intimidating)
Posts: 634
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Post by Firebringer on Mar 24, 2021 18:53:57 GMT -8
Dani nods, "Sorry, I'm being- I'm not-" She shakes her head then, "Kay, I actually have an idea of where nearby we can go..." Coffee shop isn't too far from here, maybe an extra 5-8 minutes depending on lights and idiots walking around. He can redirect there. Employee bathroom has a full length mirror... because I'm occasionally late to work. And with that, she calls Finn and texts him the new address of where they'd be going, as well as a mention of parking behind the coffee shop at the back entrance.
"Alright, let's get out of here," She says, taking Alecto's hand to walk through the mirror with her to the coffee shop where she works. They've got a good 7 hours before the store opens, which means around 6 hours until an employee shows up which- wait, is she opening today? Well, she could look at the calendar when she gets there. Oh, and there should be a first aid kit too...
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